Wire drawing apparatus



April 8, 1941. A. SIMONS WIRE DRAWING APPARATUS Filed March 2, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. abraham Sin-1 11s ATTORNEYS 'W rm/ A ril 8, 1941. 3mm 2,237,371

WIRE DRAWING APPARATUS Filed March 2, 1938 2 Shuets-Shee'i; 2

1 1' 815 INYENTOR.

BY 175mm ATTORNEYS Apr. 8, 1941 WIRE DRAWING APPARATUS Abraham Simons, New York, N. Y.

Application March 2, 1938, Serial No. 193,421

5 Claims.

My invention relates to a new and improved method of drawing wire and to a new and improved wire drawing apparatus.

One of the objects of my invention is to provide a method whereby the W re is subjected tt a back-pull or back-resistance as the wire is pulled through the drawing die.

Another object of the invention is to provide simple and efficient means which are operated by the draft or pulling device, for subjecting the wire to said back-pull or back-resistance, with little or no loss of power.

Another object of the invention is to provide an adjustable or. regulated friction drive, for securing the above-mentioned results.

Another object of the invention is to provide mechanism whereby the wire is led through a single pass in a plurality of runs.

Another object of the invention is to return to the drum which acts as the draft device, the power which is applied'to a unit which imposes the back pull or back resistance.

Other objects of the invention will be set forth in the following description and drawings which illustrate a preferred embodiment thereof, it being understood that the above statement of the objects of my invention is intended generally to explain the same without limiting it in any manper.

Fig. l is a top plan view of one form of appahas a suitable number of superposed annular coils around the first pulley member 3, so that there will be little or no slip between the wire and said pulley member 3. There should be no slip or as little slip as possible between the run I and the pulley 3. If this can be secured by having the run I pass only once around pulley 3, this is within the invention.

In Fig. 4 I have shown three coils of the wire around the pulley member 3, but any suitable number of coils or turns could be used, in order to cause the wire and the pulley 3 to move in unison without any substantial relative slip or relative movement.

That portion of the wire W which is taken off the first pulley member 3 is designated by the reference numeral 4 and for convenience, this may be designated as the second run of the wire.

The second run 4 contacts with portions of the peripheries of grooved idler-s5 and 6, which turn in unison with the movement of the wire. The idler 5 is preferably mounted so as to turn around a. vertical axis as illustrated in Fig. 6. The idler 6 is mounted to turn around an axis which is inclined to the vertical direction, as

. shown in Fig. 6, so that the Wire which leaves the Fig. 4 is a sectional view, partly in elevation,

on the line 4--4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view on the line 5--5 of Fig. A.

Fig. 6 is an elevation on the line 6-45 of Fig. 1.

Referring to Fig. l, the wire W passes through the apparatus in a series of runs. The entering run I of the wire W passes through a suitable friction device 2, of the well known type, for imposing a relatively low frictional resistance to the movement of the first run I, which moves in the direction of the arrow which is indicated in Fig. 1.

The function of the device 2 is merely to keep Referring to Fig. 4, the entering or first run I passes around a first pulley member 3. The wire idler B is inclined upwardly relative to the wire which moves between the idlers 5 and i.

The arrow 50 in Fig. 6 shows the level of the wire as it passes around the pulley 5. After leaving the idler 6, the wire moves horizontally in a direction away from the observer and perpendicular to the plane of the paper in Fig. 6, and at a level which is indicated by the marking 5i in Fig. 6. This level is higher than the level of run 4 which moves in a horizontal path. The run I also moves in a horizontal path towards pulley 3.

.path. The run Ill passes around a pulley unit II.

The wire. contacts with the periphery of pulley unit ll, along an are which ,is less than 360, as shown in Fig. 1. The portion or run of the wire which leaves the pulley unit II is designated by the reference numeral I2. This run I2 moves in a horizontal path and it passes around a portion it is perpendicular to a plate 33 which is inclined to the horizontal plane. Fig. 2 shows a base Hi to which the plate 33 is rigidly secured.

That portion of the wire which is located between the lower grooves it and it of guide rolls B and C is designated by the reference numeral I511. The wire contacts with a portion of the wall of groove M of guide roll C. The portion or run of the wire which leaves the lower groove IA of the guide roll C is designated in Figs. 1 and by the reference numeral l5. This run It moves in a horizontal path and it passes around the periphery of the groove of pulley member it, and in contact with said periphery along an arc of less than 360.

The inclination of the axes of revolution of the guide rolls B and C carries the horizontal run l5 to a higher level than the horizontal run H2. The wire which leaves the groove of member 86 now passes around the periphery of the upper groove ll of the guide roll B, contacting with said periphery along an arc of less than 360, as

shown in Fig. 3, and the wire then passes to the upper groove ll of the pulley unit C. The wire contacts with a part of the periphery of said groove H and it then leaves the upper groove H in the form of a run l8 which is wound up in a series of turns lBa, on the drum A. This drum A has a slightly tapered bottom portion A upon which the turns l8a are wound and said drum A also has a portion 30 along which the turns of wires slip upwardly in the usual manner, so as to form a coil of wire.

Said drum A is integral with pulley members it and M. The hollow drum A is mounted so as to turn in unison with a driven shaft 40..

A bushing 4| is connected to the shaft 40, by means of a key 42. This bushing 4| has a portion thereof externally threaded. The drum A has an internally threaded portion 43 which is screwed to the bushing 4| so that the drum A turns in unison with the bushing 4| and with the driven shaft 40.

The pulley member 3 is non-integral with drum A. As shown in Fig. 4, the top and bottom walls of said pulley member 3 are provided with aligned annular depressions, in which friction plates 41 and 48 are respectively located.

A series of springs 46 abut the top surface of the friction plate 41. Cups 45 are mounted on the springs 46. The upper closed ends of said cups 45 abut a ring 44, which is screwed on the' threaded wall of the bushing 4!. The vertical position of the ring 44 may be adjusted or regulated so as to cause the springs 46 to exert a regulated or adjusted pressure on the top friction ring 4?.

The cups 45 are slidably guided in suitable bores which are provided in the adjacent flange of drum A. The lower friction ring 48 is provided with a series of vertical recesses in which pins 51 are located. Said pins are located in vertical bores of a flange of the bushing 4|. Similar supplemental pins prevent friction ring 41! from turning relative to member 3. Said supplemental pins are located between springs 45.

The pins 57 may have a drive fit in the bores of the flange of the bushing 4! or they may be otherwise rigidly secured to the bushing 4i. The bottom friction ring 48 may be vertically movable or adjustable relative to the pins 51.

The friction device acts as a brake if member 3 is turned more revolutions per minute than the drum. It also acts as a slip-drive to turn drum A, if member 3 is turned more revolutions per minute than the drum.

In order to start the operation of the device, the wire is led through the die and passed around all the pulley members and said wire is coiled one or more times around the lower part of the drum A, and the free end of the wire is secured to drum A.

Power is now applied to the shaft 40. The friction drive which is provided by the friction discs All and At, the springs 56 and the cups 45 and the pressure ring A l tends to turn the pulley member 3 in unison with and at the same angular velocity as the drum A, so that this slip-friction drive tends to cause member 3 to turn the same number of revolutions per minute as the draft-drum A. However, the peripheries of the grooves of members H and I6 are of greater diameter than the periphery of the groove of the member 3, making allowance for the elongation of the wire which is produced by the die 9. Said members it and it have grooves whose peripheries are of equal diameter.

As previously stated the members II and I6 are integral with the drum A. The wire cannot slip relative to the pulley member 3, as there is enough friction between the wire and the pulley member 3 to prevent such slipping. Said member 3 operates as a back-pull member.

The peripheries of the grooves of members II and i6 constitute the effective forwardly-pullingdraft-periphery of drum A, or a part thereof. The lower part of member A may constitute a part of the effective draft-periphery. Said effective draft-periphery is of greater diameter than the effective draft-periphery of the turnable backpull member 3. If the friction-device which couples the drum and the back-pull member were omitted, member 3 would turn freely and at greater angular velocity than drum A. Since pulleys H and it act as equal draftmembers, they operate to pull the wire away from pulley 3 at a linear velocity which is regulated by the angular velocity (number of revolutions per minute) of said members It and I6 and the diameter of their grooves. The wire exerts a torque on pulley 3, so that pulley 3 tends to turn at an angular velocity sufficiently great to cause the wire to leave member 3 at the same linear velocity as the linear velocity at which members it and it take up said wire. Therefore the pull of the wire urges member 3 to turn at greater angular velocity than members ll audit, since the groove of member 3 is of smaller diameter than the equal grooves of members II and It.

The friction-device tends to hinder said free turning of member 3. Therefore the run 4 is subjected to tension or to back-pull anterior die 9 Said back-pull depends upon the force of the friction device which couples the drum and the back-pull member 3. Said coupling-force can be adjusted. If the friction device did not couple the back-pull member 3 and the drum or draftdevlce, there would be a considerable loss of power. However, the friction device slips so as to permit member 3 to turn at greater angular velocity (more revolutions per minute) than drum A, as soon as the tension in run 4 equals or is slightly greater than the frictional coupling-force, making allowance for the difierence in lever-arms of the tension in run A and of the coupling force. The lever-arm of the frictional coupling force is determined by the diameters of discs d? and 48.

The lever arm of run 4 is determined by the diameter of the periphery of the'groove of mem ber 3.

Hence, during the operation of the apparatus, member 3 turns at regulated greater angular velocity than drum A, so that member 3 also operates as a drive-member to actuate drum A, through the slip-coupling device. The coupling between the drum and the back-pull member may be of any type other than the frictional type without departing from the invention.

If a frictionslip-coupling is used, there is some heat loss, but this is more than compensated for because the back-pull of member 3 reduces the pressure in the die, so that there is a saving in power of at least twenty per cent to thirty per cent over the same type'of apparatus which is operated without a back pull.

The back pull on the wire, in the run directly anterior the die, may be as high as 50% to 90% of the pull which would normally be required to pull the wire through the die, if there were no back pull.

There may be a slight slip between the wire and members I I and I6, but there is slip between the wire and member A, or at least between the wire and the base of member A. For conven ience, the device will be described and claimed with a vertical axis of revolution of drum A, although the invention is not limited thereto.

In designing the effective diameters of the pulley members II and I6, as compared with the effective diameter of the pulley member 3, allowance must be made for the elongation of the wire, due to the reducing effect of the die 9. efiective peripheries of members Ii and I6 must therefore be increased in diameter.

Intermediate the pulley members B and C, the runs of the wire contact with portions of the circumferences of the lower and upper grooves Ma and Na of a pulley member 32, which is mounted on a plate 3|. Said plate 3| is turnably mounted at its center on the plate 33 by means of a pivot screw 3Ia. The position of the member 32 can therefore be adjusted as can be seen by comparing Fig. 1 and Fig. 3.

The

If the turns 3a are to be of relatively large diameter, the member 32 is moved to the full line position shown in Fig. 3. If said turns I80. are to be of relatively small diameter, the member 32 is adjusted to the broken line position shown in Fig. 3.

Therefore the device can be used with drums of different sizes, and turns Illa of different diameters may be wound on the drum.

The machine may be operated without any slip between the wire and members ii and I6.

The invention is not limited to the complete preferred embodiment, and it includes numerous valuable sub-combinations.

The members II and I6 may be considered as constituting parts of the drum.

I claim:

1. Wire drawing apparatus comprising a turnable drum having a base portion on which the wire can be coiled in a plurality of superposed turns, said drum having grooved means below said base portion, the periphery of the groove of said grooved means being circular, a turnable back-pull member having a groove whose periphery is of circular shape, said back-pull member being located below said grooved means and being mounted to be turnable about the same axis of revolution as the'drum, slip-coupling means between the drum and said back-pull member, a die, guide means adapted to guide the wire to the groove of .said back-pull member and then successively to the die and from the die to said grooved means, the diameter of the periphery of the groove of said grooved means being sufiiciently greater than the diameter of the groove of said back-pull member to cause the back-pull member to turn at greater angular velocity than the drum when the device is operated, and slip-coupling means between the drum and the back-pull member.

2. A device according to claim 1 in which the slip-coupling means are adjustable frictionmeans.

3. In wire drawing apparatus, a draft-drum having grooved means movable in unison therewith, a shaft, a bushing connected to said shaft, the draft-drum being connected to said bushing, said shaft and bushing and said draft-drum turning at the same angular velocity, said bushing having an outward lateral flange, a grooved pulley member mounted turnably on said bushing below said grooved means, friction means frictionally coupling said pulley member to said drum, regulating means movably mounted on said bushing and adapted to regulate the force of said frictional coupling.

4. A device according to claim 3 in which said friction means comprise a first ring located in a lower recess of the pulley member and abutting said flange, and a second friction ring located in an upper recess of the pulley member and abutting a surface of the pulley, and means preventing said friction means from turning, and springs located in cups vertically movable in said drum and abutting the second friction ring, and in which said regulating means abut the top ends of said cups.

5. A device according to claim 1 including means for guiding the wire in adjustable angular shape subsequent to the die.

ABRAHAM srMoNs. 

